The Dark Knight
by Alyce of the Togas
Summary: Steph/MM. There wouldn't be any trouble at a medieval fair...right?
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: All characters are property of Janet Evanovich. I'm just playing with them a little bit.

Author's Notes: Once upon a time, I did see the movie Camelot. But for the life of me – I can't remember much about it now, so apologises to any glaring mistakes. I'm a complete Tart so this is going to be a Steph/MM fic. I wasn't going to post this fic, until I had more written, but I would like to know what everybody thinks – so here it is. I hope you all enjoy.

* * *

**The Dark Knight**

**Chapter One**

Sighing I looked down at my dress. It certainly wasn't what I was used to wearing, but it was pretty none the less.

The light breeze drifted in through the woods, making the flag – whoops, Bobby had corrected me on this earlier – the pennant behind me flick softly in the wind. I looked up at the pennant and couldn't help but give a slight smile at the silver Rangeman logo hand-sewn onto the black background. Ella had done a fantastic job with it. And with everybody's costumes. And the tents. And the food. I think she just likes to sew and cook a lot – and this long weekend definitely provided a different outlet for her creative urges. It turned out that she and Louis had made the tents themselves, which explained why they all matched so perfectly. I was extremely pleased when I found that that was even a small shower one set up. Thankfully the area had bathrooms already! When I agreed to come I was slightly worried about the lack of modern day amenities...

Moving my sight away from the pennant I look around the clearing, taking in the sights and sounds. Everywhere people are dressed in costumes and busy putting up tents. I even spotted a few young children with the supervision of an adult, setting up torches and lanterns leading to the path down to the 'market' and 'show' areas, since the festival also continued into the evenings.

Honestly, if I didn't know that it was the 21st Century, I would really think we were back in medieval times. The atmosphere of this forest certainly helps, with its tall dark pine trees and soft whispering winds.

I can't help but sigh again, and pick up the mug – tankard – to wipe off any dust. Ella had put me in charge of making sure all the necessary cutlery and stuff was ready to go, then, as she put it, "go and have a good time".

Sometimes my life was really odd.

Picking up another tankard, the last one of my task, I thought back to how I gotten involved in this.

* * *

It was a Friday night, and had been an extremely long day. After successfully nabbing a skip (without getting dirty for once) I had headed over to Rangeman to check if my inbox had any searches to run. I had been working for Rangeman fulltime for three months, and loved it. Ranger let me skip trace for Vinnie at least twice a week, I had a partner to do it with, and the rest of time I either filled in for one of the guys on various tasks, or ran searches. The pay was good. The benefits were great. And Joe had finally gotten the message that we were never going to work together.

There were three searches to run in my inbox, none marked urgent, so I started with the one on top first, and then made my way to the kitchen to see what there was to eat. Ella and I had a secret spot in the kitchen, where she would hide me tasty and delicious types of food. And despite the guys best attempts none of them knew where it was.

Or at least that's what I told myself, because nobody ever seemed to take anything from there.

By the time I had retrieved my snack – chocolate cake, Ella was a goddess – and made my way back to my desk, there were three new searches, all marked urgent, sitting on top of my keyboard. And same as always when this happened, they were all from Rodriguez.

Sighing, I sat down in my chair. That's when I saw the note on top of them written in smooth cursive:

"I'm sorry for dumping these on you Steph, especially on a Friday afternoon, but you are the best at them. R."

Well – that was certainly different. I've never seen Rodriguez, and if it weren't for Tank's assurance I would think he didn't really exist. This is the first time he's ever written a note either...

Ping. I looked up at my computer and it was done with the first search. I printed out the results and put them in the file.

Putting down my cake, I put in the info for Rodriguez's first urgent search, a badass guy who went by Jimmy the Hand. Once that had started, I thought about the note and how all of the guys had been acting over the past two months.

They've managed to learn phone manners from somewhere, but I suspect that they only apply them when talking to me.

They've also started knocking before breaking into my apartment – though I suspect it has to do with the time Lester came strolling in and found me wandering around looking for clean clothing to wear naked. I think they heard my screams back at Haywood. Lester still hasn't lived that one down, and now all of them knock loudly.

Cal has started to open doors for me, and even holds my chair out to sit. I think the chair thing is a bit of over kill, but he lights up when I let him and always gives me such a cute smile, so I can't say no to it. The one time I did, I felt like I had kicked a puppy, after Cal gave me a sorrowful look with his big brown eyes.

Hal doesn't like to see me lifting anything heavy (except weights in the gym), and takes over carrying anything he considers to be too heavy for me.

And on top of all this and more, none of them ever let me pay for food when we grab lunch or dinner. Looking back I can see that it started the week Ranger packed up and moved to Miami. Little did they know that a month previous, when I started working fulltime for Rangeman, Ranger and I made a deal. I would work for him fulltime, if he either backed down or stepped up. He decided to back down. At the time I was pretty sad, but it was better to stay as close friends, and now we talked at least once a week on the phone. It sounded like he was finally building a proper fatherly relationship with Julie.

Now – Rodriguez – the Merry Man I've never even met face to face is leaving me polite (and pretty looking) notes apologising.

My computer pinged again, so I pushed the thoughts of how odd the guys had been acting to the back of my mind and delved into the sick and twisted world of Jimmy the Hand.

I was startled out of my work by Lester poking me in the side.

"Bomber! What are you still doing here, it's 7pm."

Wow – I hadn't even realised how much time had passed. Rodriguez's searches were really full on.

"I was doing some searches for the Mystery Man, and I guess I lost track of time." Lester smiled at me, and leaned over to look at my computer screen. I could feel myself heat up, Lester's smile was definitely sexy. The guys all loved it how I called Rodriguez the Mystery Man, but seriously, I have never even met this guy – what else was I going to call him?

"Well – it looks like the searches finished running two hours ago. What have you been doing since then?"

I could feel my face heat up slightly, "I was reading through the information and seeing if I could make any connections..."

Lester just gave me that sexy smile of his again, and out of the corner of my eye I could see Bobby approaching.

"Hey Bomber – we thought you had gone home hours ago!"

I smiled at Bobby, "I was just finishing some searches off." I stood up and stretched out my back, inwardly smirking when I saw both of them trying not to watch me, "Now that they are done I think I will go home." My stomach rumbled and Lester and Bobby both grinned.

Bobby's eyes sparkled, "Hey, we have stacks of pizza arriving soon and am watching a few movies tonight at Vince's apartment. Did you want to come?"

Well – the idea of going home to my foodless apartment wasn't particularly appealing...

Lester swung an arm around my shoulder and picked up my pocketbook from the desk, "Well that settles it then."

Huh – damn. I talked out loud again. Both of them laughed as Bobby turned off my computer, and put the files in a neat pile.

They led me down to the fourth floor (via the staircase naturally) and once we arrived at Vince's apartment didn't bother to knock and went straight in, dragging me along with them.

"Hey – look – we bought Bomber with us!" Lester exclaimed. All of the guys in the room cheered then proceeded to shuffle around and make room for us to sit. Once I had place of honour on the big sofa squished in between Vince and Brett, I could finally take stock of who was here. In addition to Vince, Brett, Bobby and Lester, there were several other guys sprawled around on chairs or cushions on the floor. Cal and Zip were leaning with their backs against the sofa I was on, while Hal, Woody, Zero and Binkie were sprawled around the floor on cushions with Lester and Bobby.

A knock sounded on the door, and Tank entered his hands full of pizza boxes with Junior following with a case of beer and some bottles of soft drinks. The guys let out another cheer, and after some rearranging managed to make room for Tank and Junior to sit, with the pizzas and drinks on the coffee table. It was crowded in Vince's living room, but everybody appeared to be comfortable. I loved seeing the guys when they were relaxed and in casual clothes – it was a completely different side of them.

I overheard Tank ask Vince where Rodriguez was and tuned my ears into their conservation. I wanted to know more about the Mystery Man. All Vince said was that Rodriguez had some urgent work to do so couldn't make it tonight as planned. I wonder if this had to do with the searches I had done for him this afternoon – there were a few interesting connections I noted down for him and put in the files with the searches...

Vince nudged me and handed me a plate. I was in the best position. I could see the television perfectly, reach the pizza easily, and was squeezed on a sofa between two incredibly hot guys in a room full of hot guys. I was feeling like an incredibly lucky girl at the moment.

Once everybody had gotten some food and drink, Vince pressed a button on the remote next to him and the lights dimmed. The television turned on, and a menu button for... What? Seriously? We're going to be watching Camelot?

When I opened my mouth to say something, Brett nudged me and shook his head.

Ok – I could wait until the movie was over to ask what was up with Camelot. Relaxing back, I settled in and enjoyed the movie.

As soon as the credits starting rolling Lester and Bobby started a debate with Zero and Junior over the different fights with swords and whether they were real enough or not. Tank, Cal and Vince were talking about the costumes; while Zip, Woody and Hal started in about who they would be out of the Knights of the Round Table.

I was gobsmacked. I could feel Brett silently laughing beside me, so I turned around and looked up at him. "I bet you never thought a bunch of tough guys would enjoy watching Camelot, hey?" I shook my head in a negative. This was a complete head spin. They all seemed to enjoy the movie, and now they were debating various aspects of it. And talking about costumes.

Brett grinned down, "About three years ago, Frederick, Vince and I stumbled across a fair held about an hour outside Trenton. It was a medieval style fair, and after spending a couple of hours wandering around the fair and talking to the people there we were hooked. It's held every six months or so, and they have booths and tournaments, and everybody wears costumes."

Ok... I wouldn't have thought that Brett or Vince would be into something like that, but I suppose I could see the appeal...

"The three of us started to go-"

Brett got cut off by Binkie who had heard our conservation, "and the rest of us decided it sounded like fun and started to go as well. Now it's a bit of a tradition that we go every six months to the fair. The weekend before, we watch movies and check our weapons and costumes."

I was flabbergasted. By this time all of the guys were looking at me. Tank's deep voice rumbled through the room, "Ranger gives all of us," he gestured to the room, "and Rodriguez, the long weekend off whenever a fair is being held. Even Ella and Louis come with us. Ranger said it was a good chance for team building outside the normal workplace, and has even come along a few times himself."

"The guys who really aren't interested don't mind covering Rangeman for the weekend we're gone." Zero looked thoughtful, "Though why they wouldn't want to hit other men with swords is beside me..."

All of the guys were watching me to see how I reacted. While I think it's odd that these guys would be into this medieval stuff, I also think it's kind of cool that they have something which they so obviously enjoy so much. And the fact that they're opening up as a group and letting me participate in part of their preparations for next week is also really kind.

I smiled at them all, "It sounds pretty cool."

The smiles on their faces let me know that I had said the right words. Zip looked up at me from his spot next to my legs, "How about you come with us next weekend Steph?" Zip's eyes were full of hope and enthusiasm.

My eyes widened.

Woody chirped up, "You do have the whole weekend off."

I nodded my head agreeing that I did have the weekend off.

Should I go with them? See what this medieval fair was about? It could be fun... Right? I'd get to know the guys better. My mind wandered back to what I was thinking about that afternoon, they had been incredibly sweet the last couple of months.

I shook my head and looked around the room. Each and every one of them was giving me small shy smiles, and big eyes.

Lester did his sexy smile, "Come on Bomber. It will be heaps of fun. We promise." All of them nodded in agreement, their smiles widening.

"Well... If you promise it will be fun..."

Vince stood and pulled me up so I was standing on the couch, while all of the guys cheered and stood as well. He looked up at me and grinned, "You'll see Steph, and it's going to be an awesome weekend!"

After that there was much hugging and talking about the fair. The more the guys talked about it, their enthusiasm shining through (though I know for several of them it was just the fun of the tournaments they really went for) the more excited I got. The realisation that this got me out of dinner at my parents next week was an added bonus.

* * *

I startled when one of the guys came up behind me and hugged me from behind. I was so wrapped up in thinking I didn't notice anybody approaching. It was ok though, because I could tell by the way he held me around the waist that it was Lester.

"Ok Bomber, you're done. We're all done setting up the tents and stuff, so let's go and check out what is happening down at the market ground."

I placed the tankard down, while Lester grabbed my hand and starting leading me towards the path down to the market. While we had only been here since this morning setting up, I could already see it was going to be a fun weekend.

When Ella had heard I was coming along, she got so excited, going on about fair maidens and clothing. I think she was hoping I would come, because she already had several dresses and a beautiful cloak made. I looked down at my dress again – I had several different ones all courtesy of Ella and her sewing machine, and from what I seen - the other women wearing, my dress wasn't all that different, except it was much more pretty and better made.

Lester tugged on my hand. "Come on Bomber, I want to show you what Tank has been up to."

I grinned and trotted to keep up with Lester. A few of the guys had disappeared as soon we arrived, and went down to set up stuff at the market ground and the tournament area. I couldn't wait to see what they had done.

Even when I asked during the week none of the guys would let me in on who was participating in which tournaments and what type of market stall they having. They just gave me mysterious smiles and said I would see.

I had a feeling they were planning something behind my back – but since they had promised it would fun last weekend, I wasn't too worried about their schemes. How much trouble could I get into a medieval fair... Right?


	2. Chapter 2

Disclaimer: All characters are property of Janet Evanovich. I'm just playing with them a little bit.

Author's Notes: I'm a complete Tart so this is going to be a Steph/MM fic. It was mentioned to me in a review (thank you Plum Reader) that there is already a fic titled 'The Dark Knight' – my apologies, I hadn't realised this, but I'm not changing the title of this fic either – and the reason will become apparent soon.

**The Dark Knight**

**Chapter Two**

As Lester and I wandered down the path, I couldn't help but admire how he looked in his well fitted tunic and trousers. All of the guys were wearing the same style of clothing as well as the same coloured tunics and trousers, but each had different coloured shirts on underneath. And damn, did they all look good! Lester's shirt was a lovely forest green which matched his eyes. When I had questioned Junior (who was in a lovely mint green) about the deviation from the charcoal grey, he had looked at me quizzically for a moment and just replied, "We like to wear other colours than black Steph." But when I pointed out their tunics and trousers were nearly black, he just smiled and pulled me into a hug. "It's because they're our team colours. You'll understand once you see the tournaments."

I kind of understood the tunic colours now that I was looking at the Market Place. There were booths of all different colours with lots of different types of wares. Many of the people wandering in groups were wearing the same style and colour tunics as those they were wandering with. Most of the booths also had an affiliation with one of those groups, if the colours and pennants were anything to go by.

Lester tugged on my hand again. "It's pretty cool hey?"

I gave Lester my biggest grin and hugged him from the side, "You didn't tell me that there was going to be shopping!" He just laughed, "We'll have a look a bit later – I want to show you what Tank and Cal have been doing all morning."

As Lester led me through the Market Place, I noticed the booths were selling lots of recreated medieval wares. From bowls and cups, to clothing, to weapons, to leather goods. It appeared as if each booth, and by association, each team, specialised in a certain type of product.

"Lester – what type of goods does the Rangeman team sell?" He kissed my forehead realising I had gotten the gist about the 'teams' already, "It's just around the corner Bomber, and then you can see for yourself."

Wow – I couldn't wait to see what type of stuff Rangeman would sell! I picked up the pace of my strolling, and was soon dragging Lester along by the hand. We turned the corner, and there it was - a large pavilion style tent, with an open area out the front covered by awnings. Wooden trestle tables lined the area to the sides of the tent opening under the awnings, and I could see more tables inside around the edges of the tent, as well as what looked like clothing racks, and a small change area curtained off in one corner.

Tank was carrying some large pieces of fabric, which he dumped on one of the tables. He grabbed me into a big hug lifting my feet off the ground. I couldn't help but squeal in delight and notice the shirt he wore under his tunic was deep red. It definitely suited him.

"Bomber! What do you think of our booth?"

When he released me, I looked up at his smiling face, "It's a little big bigger than the normal ones. But I wouldn't expect anything less from you guys!" This sent both Lester and Tank off in laughter. While they were recovering themselves, Cal rounded the corner carrying a large box.

"Terrific, you're here Steph!" He placed the box gently on the ground, and gave me a quick hug. He looked over at where Tank and Lester stood, "Hey Tank. Woody wanted you down at the tournament area for some reason." Tank shrugged in reply and sent a quick apologetic look my way before quickly walking in the direction Cal had come from.

In the meantime, Lester appeared to have spotted somebody he knew and was waving at them. He gave me a quick kiss on the forehead, before jogging off and around the corner. Hmm... It was probably a very pretty woman from Lester's abrupt need to leave.

I turned back to Cal and he just shrugged making me notice that his shirt was a nice burnt orange colour. In fact, it matched the flames on his forehead tattoo perfectly. "Hmm... Since it appears Lester just dumped you... Want to help me unpack the wares and set them up?"

I must have given him a dubious look, because he laughed and took my hand leading me over to the box he was carrying when he arrived. Using the knife dangling from his belt in a sheath, he sliced open the top and gently unfolded the bubble wrap. Ok – I'll admit I was insanely curious about what type of stuff the guys would be selling at this market stall, so I leant in closer to Cal, to properly see what was inside.

It was amazing. There was beautiful glass goblets with wrought iron wrapped around the base of the glass to create something like a wineglass, only sturdier. The glass was done in different colours, and there were different designs on the wrought iron. Cal smiled at me as he started to unpack them, "We wanted to surprise you Steph, which is why everybody was keeping very tight lipped this past week."

I looked from the glass goblets to Cal and back again to the goblets, "Surprise me with what? Whoever picked these out to sell definitely made a terrific choice. They're beautiful."

Looking back at Cal, he gave me the biggest grin I've ever seen from the tattooed man, "Well Vince will be happy to hear you say that."

Vince picked these out. No way!

"Why would you say that Cal? Did Vince do the shopping for the stall?"

He shook his head and gave me the toothy grin again, "This is why I thought you might enjoy unpacking with me – Vince made these himself."

What!

I had never thought of any of the Merry Men doing anything creative, let alone making something as spectacular as these goblets. Wow. I'll definitely have to tell Vince how beautiful I think they are... Maybe I could commission some from him later in the year...

I shook myself out of my thoughts as Cal opened another box. I was very excited to see what was in there. This one was full of carved wooden bowls and cups. There were simple ones, and then ones with intricate designs around the edges. They were amazing – the amount of detail that were in some of the pictures. I picked up a bowl and ran my hand along the wood – it was so smooth it felt like porcelain...

"Who made these Cal?" I think it was reasonable since Vince made the goblets; somebody else had obviously carved these...

Cal grinned, "Bobby hand carved them himself. When he's on a roll, he can do up to three plain bowls or cups a day. The more intricate ones obviously take more time." I nodded in understanding and started to arrange the glass goblets and wooden bowls and cups on one of the trestle tables which had a thick dark fabric already covering it.

Cal and I continued until we had nearly the whole stall set up. There was something of everything here, and pretty much all the guys had contributed wares to the stall. Hal and Zip both made leather goods, such as bags, pouches, belts, boots, and armguards. Some of them were even stamped with Celtic type designs around the edges. And I realised where Ella had gotten the boots I was currently wearing from. There were fantastic and brightly coloured pottery bowls, vases, urns and mugs made by Junior, while Binkie made various types of leather and metal wristbands, necklaces and adornments.

When I asked Cal what the two empty areas at the back of the tent were for, he said that Ella made clothing, which makes sense because there was a change room and mirror in that corner. The other empty corner was for the weapons Tank and Cal made. Tank did the blacksmithing, while Cal made the sheaths. I couldn't wait to come back once Ella and Tank had set up their areas.

Who would have thought that so many of the Merry Men were so creative? I definitely didn't, and every time Cal opened a new box I found myself amazed again and again. Cal explained that this is what they did to help calm down after a big take down, or just to take a break and relax.

There was also a small area left empty on one of the tables under the awning. "Hey Cal, why is this space still empty. Should I put anything there?" Cal came over and shrugged slightly, "That's usually where Frederick's stuff goes. Except because he urgently had to work this weekend, I'm not sure whether he's going to be able to get his stuff here... Maybe he might con one of the guys into dropping it off."

Hmmm... Frederick. The mysterious Rodriguez. "What does he make?" Cal just shrugged again, "If he manages to get the stuff here, you'll see."

Oh great. Another mysterious thing about the Mystery Man. It's sad that he has to miss out on all of this due to work. Vince mentioned on the ride to the forest, that Rodriguez looks forwards to these fairs so much. I'm just annoyed because it means this is another time where I have failed to meet him.

Cal and I had finished putting the boxes away when Brett walked up. I couldn't help but notice he had a deep blue shirt on. It seemed all of the guys had different coloured shirts, and I suspected that no two were the same colour.

"Steph – you look amazing," Brett twirled me around, "Now I understand what the guys were talking about earlier."

That stopped me up short; some of the guys were talking about me...?

I must have accidently spoken out loud because Brett sent me a quick wink, "Not in bad way Bomber. They just mentioned how beautiful you looked." I could feel my face reddening slightly...

"Anyhow," Brett continued, "It's time to head down to the Tournament area for the opening procession." Cal gave a quick cheer, and linked one of his arms with mine. Obviously, Brett didn't want to be outdone, because he linked my other arm and gave Cal a quick glare. Cal just smirked back in response. Together they led the way down to the Tournament area.

The Tournament area was set up with large open area with wooden stall-seating situated along three sides. Large flags and pennants surrounded the outside of the field where the seating wasn't. I spotted Ella waving from the front of one of the stalls with Louis sitting next to her looking amused. Cal and Brett led me over to them, Cal unlinking my arm with his, while Brett escorted me to my seat next to Ella. Both of them said a quick hello to Ella and Louis, then shot a smile at me before heading over to where I could see a group of Rangeman congregating.

Once everybody in the spectator stalls had settled down, a trumpet rang out across the field, startling me slightly and a herald proceeded to give a lengthy and boring speech welcoming everyone to the fair, and going over the rules of the tournament. I zoned out from his speaking and proceeded to watch the different groups of people on the field. They were clustered according to their tunic colours, and all up I counted about ten groups with varying amounts of people in each. Rangeman was one of the larger groups with twelve people. That's when I noticed a person standing beyond and behind the groups. Whoever the lone person was he (I could tell by the way he stood) was dressed completely in black. He was even wearing a black Zorro-type mask which covered the upper portion of his face. I can't help but wonder who he was, and why he was standing alone.

Another trumpet blared out, making me lose sight of the single man dressed in black, so I refocused back on the herald who was starting to introduce the competitors from each team. When the guys from Rangeman got introduced, Ella, Louis and I cheered and clapped. I swear I could see a slight flush appear on Binkie's neck and cheeks.

Ella gave me a slight nudge, and motioned towards the herald. Obviously he was about to say something important, so I focused my attention back on him.

"Now it is time to give the tokens, should any of the competitors wish to."

Hmmm... I wonder what's meant by that. Slowly, several men broke from their groups and walked towards the stalls. I watched a guy in a bright red tunic (which unfortunately clashed horribly with his red hair) kiss the hand of a women sitting in the stall and hand her a small handkerchief. Ohhh... So that's what's meant by token. The woman smiled at the red haired guy and tucked the handkerchief into a small purse hanging off her belt.

Ella nudged me again, this time bringing to my attention several of the Rangemen who were walking in our direction.

Oh dear.

"What are they doing Ella? Why are they walking towards me?" I noticed that despite attempting to stay calm and keep my voice even, it had started to rise.

Ella leant over, "It's ok Stephanie. The token just means that they favour you over the other women here, and hope that you would cheer them on during the tournament." I started to breathe a little bit, until something clicked, "But Ella, I would cheer them on anyway. And I can tell it also means something extra." Louis leant around his wife sporting a mischievous grin, "It also means that they wish to court you for the duration of the fair." Ella gave Louis a quick hit in the shoulder, and he leant back in seat shaking slightly with silent laughter from my shocked and panicked expression.

Ella, sensing my impending panic, took up one of my hands, "Yes, it does mean they wish to court you as well. This means that they have to behave like perfect gentlemen towards you. The normal tradition is to eventually choose one of them to have a date with by the end of the fair, but I'm sure if you're uncomfortable with the idea, you can give them back their tokens privately later this evening, and they won't be offended."

I nodded. Out of the Rangeman guys, Lester, Brett, Binkie and Vince were making their way towards me. Oh dear. It's not like I could refuse the tokens, but that would mean being courted by four separate men over the course of one long weekend. Why does stuff like this always happen to me?

Hmmm... Maybe this is like the medieval version of speed dating.

And I did mention to myself last week that I enjoyed being included... But I wasn't really thinking about this much inclusion...

Mentally sighing as Ella pulled her hand away, I stood up from my seat slowly as Lester reached me. He gently took my hand and placed a kiss upon the top of it, but didn't let it go. With his other hand, he pulled a green handkerchief (that matched his shirt perfectly) from his belt pouch and pressed it into the hand he had kissed. "I would be honoured if you would accept this token, Lady Stephanie." I smiled gently down at him, looking straight into his green flecked eyes.

I hesitated slightly, unsure of what to say for a moment, but decided I could just wing it, "I am honoured to accept the token you present." With another kiss to my hand he bowed and started to return to the Rangeman group nearby.

The same routine took place with Vince, Brett and then Binkie presenting me a handkerchief in the same colour as their shirt. I was slightly amused when I noticed Binkie was wearing a dark purple shirt, even though it definitely suited him. After I received each handkerchief Ella would gently fold it for me, and I placed them one at time in the belt pouch that hung off what Ella described as my leather waistlet.

Once Binkie had turned to return to the group on the field, I was able to sit again.

Seriously – all four of them wanted to court me? Why on earth did they want to do that? Not I'm that not flattered or anything, each of them is terribly attractive, and I do enjoy spending time with them. I fiddled with the pouch that contained the handkerchiefs, I guess I could see how this weekend goes, and just take the courting in my stride...

Plus maybe it would be fun to have specific people to cheer for, instead of just all the Rangeman guys...

The herald's trumpet blared across the field again, "Dark Knight, do you wish to bestow a token?"

Ella whispered, "It's tradition for the herald to ask the question. In the years I've been coming to the fair never has the Dark Knight ever said yes. If he does bestow a token, then not only does he have to court her, but regardless of whether he wins the tournament or not, the person upon which the token was bestowed has to remove his mask, and he can never be the Dark Knight again."

I must have looked slightly confused because Ella continued to elaborate, "The Dark Knight's identity is a secret. If he gives up his position, then at the next fair there is contest to see who will be the next Dark Knight. Anybody who wishes to try for the position must remain masked until one of them is named the Dark Knight."

I nodded my understanding to Ella.

Unfortunately I think that this Dark Knight was going to bestow a token, and he was heading straight for me.

Some of the Merry Men looked confused and were whispering eagerly to each other, while several of the others, such as Tank, were smirking at the spectacle. When the guys spotted me splitting my attention between watching them and the Dark Knight approach, several of them gave me the thumbs up and head nods.

Oh goody. At least this Dark Knight has the approval of Rangemen. And their trust.

When the Dark Knight reached where I was I stood slowly and he gently kissed first the top of my hand and then the palm. When he kissed my palm, I couldn't help but shiver slightly. Taking the chance to look at him up close, the only identifying features that weren't obscured by his black costume were his dark black hair and very bright blue eyes.

"Fair lady, I would be honoured to bestow upon you my token." He passed me a black handkerchief made of what I thought was silk.

I can't believe that I'm doing this. But after having accepted four other tokens, I knew that I had to accept his. And he does seem to have the ok from the guys...

"Dark Knight, I accept your token thankfully."

The Dark Knight gave me a flourishing bow, while the crowd erupted in whispers.


	3. Chapter 3

Disclaimer: All characters are property of Janet Evanovich. I'm just playing with them a little bit.

Author's Notes: I'm a complete Tart so this is going to be a Steph/MM fic. Thanks to everybody who has reviewed – it's awesome knowing people are enjoying the fic!

This chapter is longer than what I would normally post, but I couldn't stop it halfway through, because it felt too disjointed then, and I already knew where I wanted it to end. Enjoy!

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**The Dark Knight**

**Chapter Three**

The herald blew his trumpet again to gain the attention of the audience once more, "The tournament will start tomorrow at 9am, with the lists on the board from 7:30am."

With that the crowd started to disperse from the stands, many of them wandering onto the field to talk to people they knew within the different tournament groups. As Ella and I left the stands, we were soon surrounded by a gaggle of girls and young women. A pretty brunette wearing a dark green dress was the first to speak up, "Wow, I can't believe that you got _four_ tokens from the Rangeman team!" Another younger girl in pale yellow looked at me with wide eyes, "_And_ the Dark Knight's token as well."

I could feel myself blushing. It wasn't like I expecting any of the guys to do this. And I had no idea who the Dark Knight was at all, except that he was known by the Rangeman guys. Now I was surrounded by this group of girls. I looked to Ella, pleading with my eyes, for her to do something.

"Ok ladies. I think we should start to make our way back towards the Market Place," she said and started to herd the majority of the group towards the path. The initial woman in green who spoke first, lingered at the back of the group with me, "Ever since the Rangeman team started, none of them have ever given out any tokens. We all assumed that they already had girlfriends or whatever..." she paused for a second, "I guess we just supposed that guys that hot would be taken already."

I smiled a little bit. I had often thought the same thing, until one night on a surveillance shift with Zip, I asked him. He said most of the guys didn't have steady girlfriends or were not married due to the fact that most women couldn't deal with their jobs. The weird hours and danger aside, most of them had seen a lot of shit when they were within the Armed Forces, and a few were still contracted in and could be called up at any time. What Zip had said to me made complete sense, but I still felt sad for the guys sometimes – because they were complete sweeties (most of the time) under the black cargo pants and guns.

The woman was waiting for me to make a comment, "I work with them, and know for a fact that the majority of the guys don't have any girlfriends, partners or wives," I paused letting it sink in, "Most of them have been burned by women previously who couldn't accept their jobs or pasts."

The woman in green nodded, "They work in the security business, right?" I nodded my head, this woman had been doing her homework, "And I can tell that most of them were in the Armed Forces at one time..." She paused again. How on earth did she know that they had been in the forces? The woman must have noticed my curious look, "My father was in the forces while I was growing up, and I suppose it makes a bit more sense now that I've thought about it." She grinned and looked at me again, "I'll admit, I'm glad that the one wearing the light grey shirt didn't give you a token."

Ohhh... So she's been eyeing off Bobby...

I couldn't help but laugh in response, "So am I! I think having four of them courting me, plus whoever this Dark Knight is, over one weekend more than enough."

She laughed in response, "Anyway, my name is Sophia..." and then she proceeded to explain how the tokens and courting worked. Once we reached the Market Place, she said goodbye and went in the opposite direction to the Rangeman stall, while I headed towards it.

Now that I understood the courting process properly – I can see how this weekend is going to be fun for me.

Who doesn't like the idea of being swept of their feet? And there's no obligation after this weekend, unless I want it. Since all of the guys obviously know the rules of this, it made me feel a lot more comfortable.

How is it that I've gone from a drought of men, to a flood?

And I wasn't even looking!

The Rangeman booth was busy when I arrived. Obviously the wares are popular because business was teeming. As I was watching Ella try to convince a woman that the purple dress would suit her better than the orange, I felt a light touch on my elbow and turned around.

Vince was standing there, blushing slightly. He gave me a slight bow and kissed the back of my hand, "Lady Stephanie, would you like to accompany me for a stroll?"

Thank goodness Sophia had explained everything! Or else I would have laughed and asked why he was being so formal, which in turn would embarrass him... And of course I wanted to go for a walk with Vince, he was super cute, especially when he blushed.

Vince grinned and his blush reddened slightly. It seemed I had once again spoken out loud without meaning to...

I smiled cheekily at Vince who was still blushing, "I would love to," and took the initiative to link our arms together. I decided that I liked walking with one of the guys like this. It made me feel special, plus it was a nice reminder of how well built each one of them are!

As we strolled through the Market Place occasionally stopping at a booth, I managed to get Vince, who is usually extremely quiet, talking about his goblets and how he learnt to make them. The transformation on his face and the enthusiasm shining through when he spoke about how he loved blowing glass, and working with the iron to create the beautiful and delicate objects was amazing. It turned out his grandfather used to make glasses similar and taught Vince when he was a lot younger. Vince picked up the skill again after leaving the armed forces, and apart from selling them at the fair, also has a range stocked in a boutique shop in Trenton. I could listen to him talk about it all day.

After an hour of wandering around and talking, we started to head back towards the Rangeman booth.

"Umm... Stephanie." I paused in our walking and looked up at Vince. He had used my full name – something extremely rare, but not entirely unpleasant. He was blushing slightly again, and the way he couldn't properly look me in the eyes indicated that he was extremely nervous; "I hope you don't mind about the whole tokens and courting thing."

Before I could get a word out he continued talking still avoiding looking at me, "It's just that a few of us really enjoy spending time with you, and have been wanting to ask you out on a date for a while... Except we weren't sure how you would react..."

Now he looked at me properly, and I could sense how earnest he was being, "So when you agreed to come this weekend, we thought it would be the perfect opportunity..."

I couldn't help but grin up at him, even knowing that this was pre-planned by them, "Honestly Vince, at first I was panicking a bit. But now that the tokens and courting have been explained to me, it sounds like a lot of fun. Plus this is a great opportunity for me to get to know some of you better outside the work environment."

Wow – I sounded so mature and calm saying that... Usually in a situation like this I would stutter and stumble over my words, never quite conveying what I wanted to. This courting could be good for me personally as well...

Vince relaxed at my words – obviously he had been worrying about how I was going to take it. "Well I just want you to know Steph, regardless of what happens this weekend with the courting, I'll always want to be friends with you."

I couldn't help but smile at that, "Thanks Vince. I'll always want to be friends with you as well."

When we reached the Rangeman tent, he kissed the back of my hand again, letting his lips linger there slightly longer than before, "Goodbye for now Steph. I hope we can have another walk later," and with another small bow wandered off into the crowd again.

Smiling, I can't help but wonder if all my 'courtships' with the other guys will go as nicely as this time with Vince...

I stopped by the spot on the outside table which was empty late this morning. Obviously, Rodriguez had somehow managed to get his wares to the fair. That's surprising, but maybe he managed to convince someone to bring them for him. It seems as if he is really close to the guys and perhaps it's just coincidence that I haven't met him yet. I held back a snort – yeah right. Maybe he likes the title of the Mystery Man too much?

I looked closely at what he had made, and found myself amazed by the beautiful jewellery. The majority of the jewellery was silver, and covered all the normal types from rings, bracelets, necklaces and pendants. There were even some of the bands I had seen other women wearing around their heads with a small pendant hanging from the band onto their foreheads – but the ones Rodriguez had made were much more intricate than the others. Most of the pieces also had semi-precious stones set into them. I'm not sure how long I was standing there and admiring the jewellery, but it seemed each piece had its own vibe and character.

Seeing the jewellery Rodriguez had created, made me want to meet him even more. I wanted to meet him so I could tell him how much I admired what he could make. Maybe, when I was back in the office on Tuesday, if I had any searches from him, I could put a note in them...

Hmm... I tugged on one of my curls. That's something I'll have to think about a bit more...

And I need to remember to ask Tank about this Dark Knight. He was curious before, and now that he's 'courting' me...

I didn't want to pester Vince with questions about him. I thought that it would be unfair since they're both courting me at the same time.

"Hey Bomber," I shook myself out of my thoughts and turned to look inside the tent where Tank stood with Lester and Bobby, "We need to have a chat with you."

From the sound of Tank's voice I knew it was something serious. And also due to the dark, furious look on Lester's face. Hopefully it wasn't anything too bad... But somehow I doubted that. I wandered inside the tent to where the guys were standing at the back next to the weapons.

"What's wrong Tank?" He blinked at the fact I had correctly picked up on the fact something serious was happening. Honestly – I'm not that oblivious. Well, at least not all of the time.

Tank coughed slightly, "Ok Steph, I'm going to be very blunt – Jimmy the Hand is here."

Umm... Ok... It seems that this is serious. Like so serious I think I'll need a double dose of icecream and cake by the time we've finished talking, "I don't suppose he's here just to enjoy the festive and fun atmosphere?" I asked hopefully. I saw Bobby smirk and shake his slightly in disbelief. Well – it is a possibility – even if Jimmy the Hand is a contract killer... Or at least that's what his file suggested when I was reading it last week. Even contract killer's need to have a hobby and fun occasionally.

"No Bomber, he's not here for the fair. Though he is apparently making the most of the costumes and blending in." Tank took a deep breath, "He's here for you Steph."

I frowned. That was sort of unexpected. I racked my mind thinking of any connection Jimmy the Hand would have to me or any of the skips I had picked up recently and realised that was none. I sighed softly, "Ok Tank, I'm drawing a complete blank. Why is Jimmy the Hand here for me?"

Bobby stepped forward to explain the connection, "Remember that gang banger you picked up about a month and half ago, Amancio Ruiz." I nodded in remembrance. I was picking up my weekly supply of peanut butter, olives, twinkies and icecream, when I recognised the guy who was in front of me at the checkout line. He was one of Rangeman's high-bond skips, Ruiz. Making the most of the opportunity, and the fact I had my cuffs in my back pocket, I slipped one onto the wrist of his hand which was leaning on the counter, and the other half I locked onto the confectionary stand. Thankfully the stand was welded to the checkout, because once Ruiz realised what I had done he went nuts, and I was forced to zap him my taser before he could pull any weapons on anybody. I called for backup and Zero and Hal responded and took him down to the station. According to Big Dog who was on cell checkup that evening, Ruiz was _not happy_ about being picked up by the Bombshell Bounty Hunter, and wouldn't stop shouting that he would get revenge on me. Unfortunately this is nothing particularly new in the life of Stephanie Plum.

None of us were too worried at the time, because he didn't get re-bailed, and was sent to jail for a minimum of ten years for manslaughter. Ranger managed to smooth things over with the local gang Ruiz had been a part of, so they wouldn't take retribution on me for putting away one of their own. But now it turns out Ruiz had hired his own killer.

"How did Ruiz get in contact with Jimmy the Hand?" The guys looked slightly startled. It was nice that I could still surprise them. "What do you mean Steph?" Lester asked.

"Well – Ruiz is gang, while Jimmy the Hand is old school mob. They don't exactly socialise in the same circles..."

Tank nodded in agreement, "Rodriguez mentioned that Ruiz is currently sharing a cell with a low level mobster, so that's likely where the connection is." I nodded. Damn – my meant to be fun weekend is now turning out to be not so fun. However, I still didn't want to leave the fair and be locked up in Haywood.

I sighed, "I suppose one of the guys is always going to have to be with me," all three of them nodded, "Well as long as I get to stay at here at the fair, then it's alright."

All three of them were sporting looks of disbelief at my easy acceptance of needing a guard. And rightly so as well – usually I would rage and get angry about being guarded, but having read Jimmy the Hand's folder, I would honestly prefer one of them to be around, just in case. Thank god I made the decision to wear my thigh holster with my gun in it under my dress. And while I now know how to use it, I would still prefer to have a guard as well. Jimmy the Hand is nasty bastard – one of those types, where if you saw him at night you wouldn't just cross the street to avoid walking past him, but go across an entire state.

Something Tank mentioned earlier clicked in my mind... "So if Rodriguez talked to you, does that mean he's now here?" Tank and Bobby both gave me identical smirks, while Lester chuckled, "Bomber, if Rodriguez was here, you would never know anyway."

Blast. Lester is absolutely right. I have no idea what Rodriguez looks like so I couldn't identify him either way. And it's useless trying to identify him by who the guys talk to around the fair... Vince seemed to know stacks of different people who are obviously regulars at the fair. Damn it!

Tank just grinned at me. All of the guys thought it was hilarious I got so worked up about not having met one of them, and teased me with the knowledge constantly. He suddenly turned serious again, "Bomber – are you packing?"

Now it was my turn to turn shoot them a cheeky grin. Since I was fairly hidden from the sight of other people in the tent, I lifted up the skirt to my dress and flashed the guys a glimpse of my thigh holster, complete with gun, "It's even loaded," I joked. I happened to look at Lester as I was resettling my skirt, and had noticed his eyes had turned darker. Interesting... That's what happened when Lester barged into my apartment when I was naked...

I wonder if the other guys would get turned on by the thought I was wearing a thigh holster.

"That's my girl Steph," Tank replied, "At the moment, we think you should just continue as normal," I gave him a look, "Well as normal as you can being at a medieval fair, but keep vigilant, don't go anywhere by yourself, etcetera, etcetera, etcetera." I was amazed – Tank was channelling the bald guy from that musical The King and I! He grinned, "I figured that you know the deal by now, so why bother repeating it."

I couldn't help but smile at that.

Lester stepped forward, "Well – if we're keeping things normal," he bowed extravagantly, and placed a light kiss on the back of my hand, "Lady Stephanie, would you honour me by going for a wander?"

I raised an eyebrow, "And getting courted by five different men over one weekend is normal for me?" Lester gave a slight shrug in response, "I'm working with what I have."

"In that case, I would love to take a wander with you Lester."

Linking my arm in his, Lester led me out of the tent and started in a direction of the Market Place I haven't explored yet. I heard Tank yell from behind, "Thanks Bomber, I always wanted to be thought of as a King." Once again my mouth overrode my brain... It must be hunger which causes it to happen...

I hope this walk includes something to eat – I am starving!

Lester laughed, his eyes crinkling in the corners, "Don't worry Steph – we're heading to the food section."

I grinned, "Good. Because I feel the need for something sweet now." He nodded in understanding – I needed comfort food. We walked in companionable silence for a little bit and I realised I had forgotten to ask Tank about the Dark Knight. Damn. Breaking my chain of thought, Lester explains that there were a couple of guys not in sight to us also watching over me. I don't have the heart to go into Rhino mode over it, especially since he was leading me to food.

"Have you ever tried mulled wine before?" Lester asked suddenly as we rounded a corner to see booths selling various types of food and drink, and large wooden picnic tables spread throughout the area in between them. "No I haven't – but I'm not a big fan of wine," but everything here smells _so _good!

"I think you'll like this type of wine," Lester led me to one of the tables where I sat. Since it was still too early for dinner, this area of the Market Place was relatively quiet and empty. I watched Lester as he strode to one of the booths; the trousers he was wearing hugged all of the right places! He got two mugs of something, presumably mulled wine, and then went to another booth where they handed over something wrapped in cloth. This fair really takes the re-creation aspect seriously at times. Thank goodness nobody was speaking using 'thou' and 'thyself' though!

While we were eating our lamb pasties (delicious!) and drinking our mulled wine (non-alcoholic version, due to Jimmy hanging around) Lester explained how the tournament worked. He was participating in a few different sections, and I could see he loved the challenge of learning new things like archery.

As the food area started to become more crowded, Lester took my arm, and led me to another booth. "Two of the honey and sesame please?" The woman handed me a warm flaky pastry. I take a bite and find it is lightly flavoured with honey and sesame seeds – and is amazing! Lester just grins at my moan, and re-links our arms again.

Now that the sun has gone down it's started to get a bit chilly. "Lester – do you mind walking me up to the camp, it's getting a bit cool and I want to grab my cloak."

"It would be my pleasure Steph. I nearly forgot, but I have to meet Woody in fifteen minutes up there to discuss tactics for tomorrow." He looked slightly annoyed that our 'courting' (which sounds so silly, it's a date, so why don't they call it a date?) would have to come to an end. Once we reach the camp area Lester once again bows over my hand and places another light kiss on the back of it, "Thank you for a wonderful and delicious wander, Lady Stephanie. I hope we can repeat the experience again soon."

I smile at him. I genuinely enjoy spending time with Lester – he's easy to talk to, always has something interesting to say, and definitely knows how to keep a girl distracted when she needs to be. "I had a wonderful time Lester; I also hope we can do this again soon." Shooting another quick smile at me, he walked over to where Woody was talking to Binkie.

A cool breeze flicked through the camp ground. I shivered slighted. Definitely time to get that cloak. As I'm walking towards my tent, Binkie suddenly appears next to me, and gently holds my hand.

"Lady Stephanie, would you do me the honour of accompanying me to my favourite part of the fair?"

Hmm... There's no fighting or anything on tonight. I wonder what Binkie's favourite part is? And wasn't he meant to bow and kiss my hand and everything?

Curious, I smile, "Of course I will Binkie." I start to walk towards my tent again, "I just have to grab my cloak first." When I reach the tent, Binkie gently stops me, "Let me just check it first, please Steph." I nod in agreement, and he ducks into my tent. I think Jimmy the Hand would be nuts to try something in our camp area – my tent is literally surrounded by all of the guys tents. But it's better to be safe than sorry.

Binkie exited the tent holding my cloak, "It was all clear, but I thought I would save you the trouble." Aww... How sweet of him. He swept the cloak across my shoulders, and then proceeded to do up the buckle on the front of it. Mmmm... I'm glad Ella convinced me the cloak was a good idea – it's very comfortable and warm. I wonder where Binkie is going to take me.

We stopped at Binkie's tent, and he ducked in and came out with a dark purple cloak similar to mine. Shrugging all he said was, "It is starting to get a bit chilly." Linking my arm with his, he started to lead me towards me the market place. From the sounds travelling up the path, it appeared the majority of people were still down there.

I couldn't wait and see for myself, I just had to ask him where we were going, "Ok Binkie – you have to tell me, what is your favourite part of the fair? I thought it would have been the tournament..."

Binkie squeezed my arm slightly, "I do enjoy the tournament. But you'll have to wait and see my favourite part."

Right before reaching the market place, we turned a sharp left, onto a well travelled path I hadn't noticed before. It led around the edge of the market for a little bit, before a large bonfire appeared. People were sitting on wooden stalls placed around it.

"Terrific – it hasn't started yet." What hadn't started yet? I'm nearly beside myself with curiosity, but all Binkie does is shoot me a small smile.

"Let's sit here Steph; we'll get a good view." As we sit down in our chosen spots, the other stalls were quickly filling up around us. Binkie gently picks up one of my hands, and holds it between his hands "Is this ok, Steph?"

"Yes, it's nice Binkie." Especially if he keeps on rubbing my palm with his thumb like that...

He smiles and leans a bit closer happiness shining from his eyes, "I just know you're going to love this."

And boy – was he right!

As we watched the fire breathers, and listened to the ballads sung and the stories told, I leaned into him and relaxed. It was fantastic!

Once all the performances had ended, and the bonfire was softly glowing, we started to head back to camp. There were a few ballads and songs which had been sung in Gaelic, and Binkie was going through them with me – he had a lovely singing voice – explaining and translating them into English. He said his grandmother had taught him Gaelic, and he still talks to her every week in it.

At my tent, Binkie once again checked the inside. "Thank you for coming with me tonight Steph," he leant down and kissed my hand, "I hope we can hang out together again over the weekend."

I couldn't help but giggle a little bit at Binkie's break in the formal farewell, "I would love to Binkie – tonight was just awesome!" He smiled and let go of my hand and held back the tent flap for me to go in, "Sleep well Steph."

Louis and Ella had done a fantastic job on the tents. Mine was slightly smaller than the guys, but had enough room for a camp bed and mattress, a fold up seat, small mirror and my weekend suitcase. Ella had kindly hung up my dresses up from one of the support poles around the edge. All together, this was _way_ better than I had expected for camping.

Hmm... What to do now though? I suppose it might be a good idea to shower now, because no doubt the guys would be monopolizing it in the morning...

Ok – shower it is!

Stripping off my clothes I pull on my comfortable and well worn terry-towel robe, tying the belt in a tight knot. It wouldn't do to flash anybody on my way there. What else do I need...? "Shampoo, conditioner, body wash, razor..." and I put them all into a small carry bath bag. "Towel, body loafer..."

I was startled out my musings by a soft knock against the piece of wood Louis had hung out the front of my tent so the guys could continue to practice knocking. I waited for whoever was there to enter. That's odd, usually they've barged in by now...

Checking to make sure my robe is covering me properly; I pull back the tent flap.

Oh... I certainly wasn't expecting him...


End file.
